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TRIP 5 Bloom Lake

Distance 2.7 miles, Semiloop Elevation Gain 450 feet Hiking Time 2 hours Optional Map USGS Elsie (trail not shown) Usually Open All year (except during winter storms) Best Times April and May Trail Use Good for kids, backpacking option, dogs OK, fishing Agency Clatsop State Forest Difficulty Moderate Note Good in cloudy weather

HIGHLIGHTS Until recently, the Clatsop State Forest, a major public landholder in northwest Oregon, had no maintained hiking trails. In 2004, however, the forest managers belatedly embraced the idea of “multiple use,” which necessarily includes nonmotorized recreation, and constructed several fine paths for local pedestrians to explore. The most easily accessible of these routes is this trail to shallow but very pleasant Bloom Lake.

DIRECTIONS Drive west on U.S. Highway 26 to milepost 24.5 (exactly 4.2 miles west of the Sunset Rest Area), and park in the large gravel pull-out on the south side of the road.

The trail starts by crossing a wooden hiker’s bridge over South Fork Quartz Creek, whose waters are banked by stands of red alder and a low-growing assortment of ferns, mosses, coltsfoot, horsetails, bleeding heart, and various other water-loving plants. The moderately to steeply graded trail then leads uphill past several old stumps and through a second-growth forest filled with vine maples, salmonberries, and April-blooming wildflowers such as trillium, wood violet, and oxalis. Winter wrens, varied thrushes, and chestnut-backed chickadees bring music to your stroll, helping to drown out the sounds of traffic on Highway 26.